Downflow horizontal coking retort oven



Feb. 23, 1965 J. VAN ACKEREN 3,170,851

DOWNFLOW HORIZONTAL COKING RETORT OVEN Filed Aug. 16. 1961 5 Sheets-Sheet l sac'rr N D- D O INVENTOR. Jose/QH VAN Homard bis a Tra/PML?? Feb. 23, 1965 l J. vAN ACKEREN 3,170,851

DOWNFLOW HORIZONTAL COKING RETORT OVEN Filed Aug. 16, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 5+' INVBNTOR.

Jossfw ww @eA/zul .297- raJaA/f Feb. 23, 1965 J. VAN ACKEREN 3,170,851

DOWNFLOW HORIZONTAL COKING RETORT OVEN Filed Aug. 16, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. JoJz/w va/V Qc/ 52 United States Patent O 3,176,851 DOWNFLOW HORIZNTAL COKING RETGRI OVEN Joseph van Ackeren, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to Koppers Company, Inc., a corporation of Delaware Filed Aug. 16, 1961, ser. No. 131,934 9 claims. (ci. 2027-144) VThis invention relates in general to regenerative byproduct horizontal coking retort ovens equipped for the well-known reversal of heating of tthe'heating ilues in alternation by means of lean fuel gas'and high B.t.u. rich fuel gas such as coke oven gas.

More particularly, the invention' relates to improvements in high capacity ovens of the aforesaid type having coking chambers of increased height exceeding that of conventional coke ovens by approximately fty percent and provided with vertical ow passages in partitions between vertical llame lues and flues crossing under coking chambers to permit an increase in the height of the flame ilues alongside the coal charge space in the adjacent coking chambers by flow of waste gases oi from the vertical flame ilues without the use of horizontal bus ues at the tops of the vertical flame flues for such purpose, which bus flues limit the height to which the llame can be carried up alongside the coking chambers by combustion of fuel gas in the vertical flame flues.

The invention has for a principal object: a more simple flue construction that eliminates the need for upiiring of the vertical flame flues with rich fuel gas and which permits downiiring instead from mains and headers accessible on the oven battery roof, thereby greatly reducing the cost of construction and maintenance of this type of oven.

A further important object of the invention is the provision, in conjunction with such topring of the ilues with rich fuel gas, of a novel gas flow connection between the regenerators and the flues which permits the introduction of regenerator air or air and lean gas to the ues and off-flow of waste gas from the flues to the regenerator through ports at a multiplicity of vertically spaced levels along the entire height of the flues from riser passages in4 the vertical partitions between the vertical flameflues in each heating wall. The advantage of this latter feature is that the total quantity of fuel gas, whether rich or lean fuel gas, is initially ignited only in small amounts at a multiplicity of closely spaced levels throughout the entire height of the heating flues. In this manner all parts of the coal charges throughout their height in the adjacent coking chambers are uniformly heatedl withoutM a marked reduction in coke quality and without need for recycling inert or waste gas into the -rich gas to dilutev it to produce a long leanflame like that produced from.n theregeneratively preheated lean gas'when optionally` used to fire the flues in lieu of rich gas like coke oven gas.

Accordingly, the invention provides forjthi's 'purpose duct means crossing under intervening coking chambers and communicably connecting the bottoms of the ame ues in vone heating wall individually with thebottoms of the flame ues in the heating wall on the opposite side of an intermediate coking chamber and riser passages in the partition walls between the individual llame ilues therein withv ports therefrom to the twoflues 'separatedby `the partition wall. These ports are disposed at closely spaced levels, from bottoms to the tops of the llame flues. The riser passages of alternate partition walls are communicably connected at their bottoms with one regenj erator of a pair and the lriser passagesrof the Vintermediate partition walls in each heating ,wall are connected with another regenerator of a pair.

The rich fuel gas is supplied to each heating flue solely -at the tops thereof by means of individual vertical gas scribed or claimed.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and showing, for purposes of exemplication, a preferred form and manner in which the invention may be embodied and practiced, but without limiting the claimed invention to such illustrative instance or instances: Y

FIGURE 1 is a composite vertical sectional elevation taken longitudinally of the coke oven battery, in planes indicated by the lines C-C and D-D of FIG. 2;

FIG. 2 is a vertical section taken crosswise ofthe battery and longitudinally of a heating wall in a plane indicated by the lines A-A and B--B of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is an horizontal section taken in a plane indi cated by the line E-E of FIG. l.

`The same characters of reference designate the same parts in each of the several views of the drawings.

In the embodiment illustrated in the drawings, the in-` vention is incorporated in a combination coke oven battery, i.e., a ,battery having provision for being operated either with blast furnace gas as the `fuel or with coke oven gas burned in an atmosphere of ordinary preheated air, which is introduced intothe flame ues separately from the gas. Y

For convenience, thepresent description will be confined to the present illustrative embodiment of theinven' tion in such a combination oven battery; the n ovel features and improvements of theinvention are, however, capable of other applications, such for example, to ordinary so-called coke ovens employing coke oven gas as the fuel; hence, the scope of the invention is not confined to the specic use and specific embodiment herein described as an illustrative example.

Referring to the drawings: there are illustrated views of a chemical recovery coke oven battery or plant of the by-product type having features above specified; said oven battery embodies in its construction a plurality of crosswise elongated heating walls 11, andra plurality of intermediate crosswise elongated vertical coking chambers 12, 16,as shown in FIG. 1. The heating Walls 11 4are directly supported by the heavy supporting or pillar walls 13, 13 which extend crosswise of the battery and are located, as shown in FIG. l, beneath therespective heating walls 11. These pillar walls, together with other walls 22, hereinafter described, collectively form the main support for the entire superstructure of the oven battery and are themselves supported upon a flat mat or platform, not shown, which constitutes the subfoundatio'non which the entire battery rests. The coal to be coked is not shown, which are removed during charging of the individual vovens or coking chambers andare place/din position to close the tops of such coking chambers during Y the entire coking or distilling operation. The gasesof distillation pass from the tops of the several coking charm bers through the gas outlets, not shown, and thence through ascension pipes, not shown, into the usual gas@ Patented Feb. 23, 1,965 j fp v3 collecting main which carries the distillation products to the by-product chemical recovery apparatus.

Heat for coking the several charges of coal in the several ovens or chambers 12, 16, is derived from the heating walls 11 at the sides of the coking chambers. Each heating wall 11 is constituted of a plurality of llame or combustion ues 17. The flame liues of each heating wall are, in accordance with the invention, operatively disposed into a single series, that is `to say, all of the ues of each heating wall operate concurrently as downiiow or upflow ues, as will be hereinafter more fully explained. With regard to the ilow through the flues, the heating walls are disposed into two groups L and M. The pairs of the heating walls of the group L alternate with the pairs of heating walls of the group M. When the arne flues of `the group of alternate pairs of heating walls L are burning for downow, the llame ues of the intermediate pairs of heating walls of the group M are operating for upow of the waste gases. With this systern of ow, when the flame tlues on both sides of one of two alternate coking chambers 12 are burning, the flame ilues on both sides of the other of two consecutive alternate coking chambers 12 are operating for upow of waste gas, and when 'the flame ues on one side of each intermediate coking chamber 16 are burning, the llame flues on the opposite side of the same coking chamber 16 are operating for upflow of waste gas, the same system of ow taking place uniformly throughout the battery.

`Each regenerator 13 is a chamber containing open brick work, commonly called checker brick, and indicated at 2) with a distributing sole channel 21 underneath such checker work, the channels forming the soles of such chambers and opening up into the checker work. As shown, a heavy vertical gas-tight supporting wall 22 extends directly beneath each intermediate coking chamber 16 in parallelism between each two pillar walls 13, and such supporting walls 22 provide two regenerators located respectively on the opposite sides of such walls 22 and between adjacent pillar walls 13. The several walls 22 also have the function, with Ithe pillar walls 13, of supporting the weight of the battery superstructure. No such vertical supporting wall is provided underneath the alternate coking chambers 12 in order to leave wide regenerators between each two pillar walls 13 for each pair of heating walls L or M.

This supporting wall construction provides two series of crosswise extending gas-tight, load-carrying walls, located below the coking chambers and intermediate heating walls, which function not as mere partitions as commonly employed, but as true load-carrying, gas-tight walls, permitting lrelatively dilferent pressures to be maintained in the checker work chambers on the opposite sides of such walls, and the ow of different media in the checker work chambers separated by these walls without leakages from one checker Work chamber into another and Without danger lof mixing gases in the checker work chambers-which must be kept separate in this region of the battery.

These series of regenerators are operatively grouped into a set L of alternate regenerators corresponding individually to the individual pairs of heating walls of the groups L and into a set M of the intermediate regenerators respectively corresponding to the individual pairs of heating walls of the groups M. Each regenerator of a set L' or M' is provided with a series of regenerator ducts 23, and the ducts of both regenerators of a pair are respectively individual ame ues of the same corresponding heating wall; so that a ame flue 17 communicates directly by a pair of ducts 23 with adjacent separate regenerators, through which however flow is maintained concurrently in the same direction, that is to say, both said regenerators are either operating for inflow or outflow.

In the present embodiment of the invention, the entire series of flame ues 17 of each heating wall 11 operates in alternation either for downow burning of gases or for upow of waste gases of combustion from an adjacent heating wall to convey the waste gas products to the regenerators beneath. The reversal in ow through the fines 17 on opposite sides of the coking chambers and into communicably connected regenerators thus takes place longitudinally of the battery instead of transversely thereof, as has been a common practice in this art. The reversal of the battery is effected at the end of an operating period determined by practice and by means of any preferred known type of reversing mechanism, not shown. The function of such reversal is as follows: The regenerators that prior to the reversal operated as inflow regenerators become outflow regenerators, and the outflow operating regenerators become inow operating regenerators. The downflow b-urning series of ues switches function with the upow waste gas series of ilues and the supply of gas is turned off from the previously downburning flues and turned on into the mains of the previously uptlow waste gas llues 17.

In accordance with the present invention, to simplify the costs of construction, operation and maintenance, all rich gas is fed to the individual heating ilues solely at their tops, by means of branch pipes in the top of the battery which are fed from mains on the battery roof. To this end, extending crosswise of the battery and located above the heating walls 11 therebelow, are gas supply headers 31. These headers are for supplying coke oven gas to the several flame ues 17. The headers 31 communicate with the individual flues 17 by means of ducts 33 that lead from the headers 31 individually into the tops of individual flues 17. Within the several ducts are disposed the usual nozzles 34, and within the battery roof are also shown the tie rods 32.

The supply of coke oven gas to the respective headers 31 is derived from tthe coke oven gas mains of the usual type located in the roof area of the battery and extending longitudinally therealong. Suitable means is provided for admitting or cutting off the supply of gas with respect to each channel 31, it being understood that the gas supply is either concurrently maintained in or concurrently shut off from the headers 31 for the ame tlues 17 of the two sets L and M. For operating the battery alternatively with the use of a lean gas such as producer gas or a blast furnace gas, as the fuel, one regenerator of each inflow operating pair, such as the regenerators G of the group L may be optionally connected with a lean gas main by mechanism suchas is disclosed in the prior art, so that lean gas may be directed into such of the regenerators G as are operating for inow, for conveying through these regenerators lean gas into the burning llame flues 17.

Also, in accordance with this invention, to provide for uniform ame heating throughout the entire height of the coal charges in the coking chambers, with even heating throughout such entire height by means of rich gas, air is introduced and waste gas is withdrawn at a multiplicity of levels by means of ports 26 leading to the riser passages 37 in partition Walls 25 between the ilame ues 17. Said riser passages 37 lead to the regenerators through the regenerator ports 23 to receive air from the regenerators and to discharge the waste gas thereto. The waste gas from each flue 17, when operable for downtfow combustion of the rich fuel gas from nozzles 34, or lean gas from the ports 26 in alternate ones of the partition walls 25, is passed through crossunder ducts 28 to the bottoms of llue 17 in another heating wall for upflow in their flues to their ports 26 in all of the partition walls 25, whence they ow to the riser passages 37 and down into the regenerators 18.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the series of ues 17 of each heating Wall are provided with separating walls 25 between each two such ues, which terminate at the top of the ilues, thereby eliminating outow passageways for the exhaust of the products of combustion at the tops of the lines. The separating walls are each provided with a vertical riser passage 37 communicably connected at their bottoms with the respective regenerator ducts 23 leading downwardly into the regenerators. The cross ducts'28 extend beneath the intermediate coking chamber 16 and function to connect the downflow ilues 17 of each heating wall of the group L with the corresponding lflues 17 of the next adjacent heating wall of the group M. Thus the entire ilow from the heating wall within ythe flues of which downilow combustion is being maintained, pass under an intervening coking chamber through ducts 28 tothe bottom ofthe vertical flues 17 of an adjacent heating wall, thence up through said ilues 17V to the riser passages 37 and `thence downwardly through the riser passages to the outilow operating regenerators with which said ilues are` connected.

The draft through` the flues 17 may be regulated by means of the usual removable dampers or sliding bricks 29 located in the crossunder ducts 28 at the base of the respective flues. These sliding bricks may be reached by access ues 30 which extend through the top 15 of the battery, there being an access llue positioned over each llame` or combustion ilue 17 of each heating wall 11.

The flow of waste gas off from the bottom of each vllame flue 17, through the crossunder flues 28, into the bottoms of flame flues then operable for oil-flow of waste gas through the ports 26 in their partition walls 25, permits of-ilow of waste gas without passages which otherwise would limit the height to which llame could be conducted alongside the coal charges in their adjacent coking chambers, 12, 16. Hence, flame may be carried from the top level 19 for finished coked coal charges, on

down to the bottom of the ilues, of coal charged in up to the upper top level 19a, which is the level of the bottom of the usual leveler doors at one of the horizontal ends of these horizontal coking retort ovens.

The heating wall sets L and M comprise two sets of heating walls forming a consecutive series of groups, longitudinally of thepgbatteryY (transversely as seen in FIG. 1). Each group comprises a heating wall of a set L connected through Va crossunder duct 28 with a next adjacent heating wall of a set M as seen in the leftk hand side of FIG. 1.

To provide for lean gas underring in lieu of rich gas tiring, the regenerators areshownV as disposed for operation in groups of three regenerators each, comprising a middle wide regenerator G for inilow of lean gas, and two narrow regenerators A for concurrent inflow of air. These regenerators when operable for outflow, all operate as regenerators W for waste gas outilow to a tunnel and stack (not shown) through the sole channels 21. Each wide regenerator G communicates with the flame lues of two heating Walls through the regenerator ports 28, which lead only to the riser passages 37 in alternate partition walls whereas the narrow regenerators A each communicate with the llame flues in only one of the same two heating walls through their regenerator ports 28, which lead to the riser passages 37 in the intermediate partition Walls 25 in each heating wall 11. The ports 26 lead from each riser passage 37 into both flues on opposite sides of each partition wall, so that the regenerators A and YG communicate with all ilues 17, when these Walls are operable for downflow combustion, so that each flue is flame heated by either rich fuel gas or lean fuel gas by means of a less costly and simple, economical and facile regenerator gas flow construction.

The operation of the battery when employing lean gas, such as blast furnace or producer gas as the fuel is as follows: the supply of coke oven gas to the coke oven gas main and to all of the coke oven gas headers 31 is cut olf. A supply of lean gas is permitted to ilow into one regenerator G of each of the inow operating groups such as the set L. Passing through said regenerators, the lean gas is preheated before being delivered into the riser passages 37 for delivery to the ports 26 in the alternate partition walls for burning in the llame ilues 17. During the inilow of lean gas into such regenerators G, air ows into the other regenerators A of said inllow operating set L and passing through said regenerators is preheated prior to its delivery into the riser passages 37 for delivery to the ports V26 in the intermediate partition walls v2S for the burning llame flues, such as the flame flues of alternate pairs of heating walls L. In the flame ilues of the intermediate pairs of heating walls M, upflow is maintained into the ports 26 whence the gas passes down through the riser passages 37 to the intermediate groups of regenerators M',v wherein downflow is maintained, said regenerators M `operating as wastel gas regenerators W. The llame ilues of the walls M receive .tors and lues.

In operating the battery with unpreheated rich fuel gas, such las coke oven gas, the supply of lean gas to the regenerators G is out off and air is permitted to flow into such regenerators in place of the lean gas. During such coke Voven gas `operation a supply of coke oven gas is maintained in the headers 31 which feed the downburning ftues. The reversing mechanism, not shown, is operated at each reversal to place each of the inflow operating regenerators in communication with the outer air and concurrently all of the outflow operating regenerators W in communication with the exhaust.

' The novel mode` of operation with coke oven gas as the fuel eliminates the need for supply of a neutral gaseous diluent to the burning ilues. In operating the battery, the supply of rich gas solely at the top of each llame flue together with the admission of regenerator ai-r into the downburning llame flues at a multiplicity of levels is eifectivewto lengthen greatly the flames within such ilues and to prevent the localization of the hottest llame temperature in the extreme upper portion of the flues, since only va very small portion of the total gas is ignited at each of the levels of each of the ports 26. The entire height of Ithe coal vcharges-is flame heated since the crossunder ducts 28 take off the Vwaste gases from the ilues at a level f below the bottoms of the coal charges but above the tops of the regenerators.

The invention, as hereinabove set forth, is embodied in a particular form of construction, but may be variously embodied Within the scope of the claims hereinafter made.

I claim:

`l. In a coke oven battery, in combination: a series of alternate horizontal coking chambers and intermediate Y heating walls arranged side by side in a row, each of said heating walls having a row of vertical llame ilues with vertical partition walls between and separating each two ilues, a vertical riser passage in each of said partition walls, a plurality of ports leading from each of said passages connecting each of said passages with a pair of flues in said heating wall at a plurality of closely spaced levels along the height of the ues, crossunder duct means passing beneath intervening coking chambers and communicably connecting the bottom ends of the flame flues in each heating wall solely with the bottom ends of the flame llues in one other heating Wall, and regenerators communicably connected with the bottom ends of the vertical riser passages in said partition walls said regenerators extending parallel to said heating walls. y

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim l, and which includes rich gas headers in the region of the top of said battery, branch ducts extending down through the top of the battery and terminating solely at the tops of the llame ilues, said branch ducts connecting said gas headers with said llame flues solely for supply thereto of rich fuel gas.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, and in which the regenerators are directly connected in pairs with the flame ues of the heating walls through the aforesaid bottom ends of the vertical riser passages in said partition walls.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim l, and which includes rich gas headers in the region of the top of said battery, branch ducts extending down through the top of the battery and terminating solely at the tops of the flame flues, said branch ducts connecting said gas headers with said flame ues solely for supply thereto of rich fuel gas, land in which the regenerators are connected in pairs directly with the ame ilues of the heating walls through the aforesaid bottom ends of the vertical riser passage in said partition walls.

5. In a coke oven battery, in combination: a series of alternate horizontal coking chambers and intermediate heating walls arranged side by side in a row, each of said heating walls having a row of vertical llame ues with vertical partition walls between and separating each two flues, a Vertical riser passage in each of said partition walls, a plurality of ports leading from each of said passages to each of the llame ilues separated by the partition walls at a plurality of closely spaced levels throughout the height of the ilues, crossunder duct means passing beneath intervening coking chambers and communicably connecting the bottom ends of all of the ame tlues in each heating wall solely with the bottom ends of the ame flues in one other heating wall, and regenerators extending parallel to said heating Walls communicably connected in pairs with the bottom ends of the vertical riser passages in said partition walls, one regenerator of each pair being communicably connected directly with the riser passages in alternate partition walls in a heating wall and the other regenerator of the same pair communicably connected with the riser passages in the intermediate partition walls in the same heating wall.

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 5, and which includes rich gas headers in the region of the top of said battery, branch ducts extending down through the top of the battery and terminating solely at the tops of the ame ues, said branch ducts placing said gas headers in communica tion with said ilame flues solely for supply thereto of rich fuel gas.

7. In a coking retort oven battery, in combination: a series of horizontal coking chambers and intermediate heating walls; each heating wall comprising a row of vertical ame ues, vertical partition walls between andv defining the flues, vertical riser passages in the partition walls, and ports leading from the riser passages to the flues connecting each of said passages with a pair of said ues at a plurality of level; said heating Walls being operatively disposed into adjoining alternate and intermediate pairs ofheating walls for inflow ame heating and outflow of waste gases of combustion in alternation by having the bottoms of the ame ilues of each heating wall of a pair of heating walls disposed on opposite sides of each alternate coking chamber communicably connected solely with the bottoms of the flues in the heating wall alongside the next adjacent intermediate coking chamber by means of crossunder duets passing underneath the intermediate coking chambers; regenerators below the cooking chambers and heating walls extending parallel thereto and operatively disposed in two sets of alternate and intermediate regenerators for concurrent inilow and outflow in alternation in correspondence with said adjoining pair sof heating walls, and regencrator ducts in the masonry beneath the alternate coking chambers for communicably directly connecting the alternate and intermediate regenerators respectively with riser passages in the alternate and intermediate pairs of heating walls aforesaid.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7, and which includes rich gas headers in the region of the top of said battery, branch ducts extending down Ithrough the top of the battery and terminating solely at the stops of the flame tues, said branch ducts connecting said gas headers with said flame flues solely for supply thereto of all non-regeneratively preheated rich fuel gas.

9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7, and in which the regenera-tors are directly connected in pairs with the flame ues of the heating walls through the aforesaid bottom ends of the vertical riser passages in said partition walls.

References Cited bythe Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,193,067 s/16 Roberts 2oz-144 1,292,369 1/19 Plantinga 2oz-144 1,455,527 5/23 Gortari 2oz- 144 1,478,570 12/23 Kus 202-144 1,999,780 4/35 Persan 2oz- 144 2,053,573 9/36 Mueller 2oz- 144 u MORRIS O. WOLK, Primary Examiner.

ALPHONSO D. SULLIVAN, Examiner. 

1. IN A COKE OVEN BATTERY, IN COMBINATION; A SERIES OF ALTERNATE HORIZONTAL COKING CHAMBERS AND INTERMEDIATE HEATING WALLS ARRANGED SIDE BY SIDE IN A ROW, EACH OF SAID HEATING WALLS HAVING A ROW OF VERTICAL FLAME FLUES WITH VERTICAL PARTITION WALLS BETWEEN AND SEPARATING EACH TWO FLUES, A VERTICAL RISER PASSAGE IN EACH OF SAID PARTITION WALLS, A PLURALITY OF PORTS LEADING FROM EACH OF SAID PASSAGES CONNECTING EACH OF SAID PASSAGES WITH A PAIR OF FLUES IN SAID BOILING WALL AT A PLURALTIY OF CLOSELY SPACED LEVELS ALONG THE HEIGHT OF THE FLUES, CROSSUNDER DUCT MEANS PASSING BENEATH INTERVENING COKING CHAMBERS AND COMMUNICABLY CONNECTING THE BOTTOM ENDS OF THE FLAME FLUES IN EACH HEATING WALL SOLELY WITH THE BOTTOM ENDS OF THE FLAME FLUES IN ONE OTHER HEATING WALL, AND REGENERATORS COMMUNICABLY CONNECTED WITH THE BOTTOM ENDS OF THE VERTICAL RISER PASSAGES IN SAID PARTITION WALLS SAID REGENERATORS EXTENDING PARALLEL TO SAID HEATING WALLS. 